More Than A Game
by Zakwolfe
Summary: Yugi and his friends are asked to help test KaibaCorp's new game where cards mean nothing and the monsters are real. Yugi expects things to be normal and its just a simple run-through, but when things get mixed up, it will be far from Yugi's expectations.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey there everyone. I finally decided to upload one of my stories on here and share with you guys. It's my first actual story that I haven't given up on after like two chapters XD. **

**Well anyway, this is a story about Yugi and Mokuba (will probably include the rest of the group with their own chapters but the main two are Yugi and Mokuba) I'm not very good at this whole thing so I have no clue what to say, except I hope you guys enjoy it because there needs to be more Chibishipping in the world. I welcome your comments and reviews (just don't insult me or my story, that's all I ask.)**

**Oh yeah, I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh. If I did, then YugixMokuba would be canon. Lol. Well, hope you guys like.**

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**Chapter 1**

"Yugi! Your friends are here! Hurry up, my boy, you don't want to keep them waiting!"

"I'll be down in a minute, Grandpa!" Yugi called down to his Grandfather. The teen stood in front of his mirror as he got dressed, half naked and clothes scattered around his room. He grabbed a white tank top and slid it over his head then looked over at Yami who was sitting on the bed. "What do you think?"

"_You're asking me what I think of your outfit? Yugi, you know I'm not an expert on this stuff. But if you're asking me if I think you look like a fool or not, then no, you don't."_ Yami replied

"Well, I guess that's good enough. We can't keep them waiting any longer." Yugi tossed on his jacket, put the Millennium Puzzle back around his neck, and run out of his room to meet with his friends, who were waiting for him at the entrance to the shop. Running into the room, he was greeted with a voice that was hard to mistake for anyone else.

"Hey, Yug, what took ya so long?" Joey asked with one of his signature grins. Joey was there along with Tea and Tristan. "I bet Mai and Duke are already there waiting for us. Not to mention, I've been itching for weeks to try out KaibaCorp's new game."

"What's the hurry, Joey? You know how Kaiba's last little virtual reality game went. Plus, you can't stand him." Tristan replied shaking his head at his friend.

Tea nodded. "He's right, Joey, you shouldn't be so eager for this." She said looking at Joey who had his fist clenched towards Tristan. "Our previous times in Virtual Reality haven't gone that well."

"I don't see any reason to worry guys." The spiky hair teen said. "Mokuba said that his brother oversaw the whole production of the game. Not to mention, they went over everything multiple times to make sure there won't be any problems this time."

"_Your friends still have a point, Yugi. They have a right to be a little nervous about this." _

"Oh come on you guys. You were there when Kaiba's brother showed up the pictures of the game. How could you not be excited to try it? Plus, we've been able to overcome any problems in the past." Joey explained then looked at Yugi standing close to him. "Ain't that right, Yug?"

Yugi smiled and nodded. "Right."

"Well, we better get going guys. Serenity and Bakura are waiting for us outside. The sooner we get to Kaibaland and try the game out then the sooner we can go home." Tea told the gang, still nervous about this.

The group of teens walked outside and were greeted by Joey's sister as well as Bakura. The greetings were short and sweet because it hasn't been that long since they've last seen each other. They had to walk to Kaibaland, but they didn't mind walking. They loved walking actually because that just gave them more time to talk. Before they knew it, they saw Kaibaland approaching in the distance.

The whole park was closed that day for maintenance and a few renovations, so the only people in the park were KaibaCorp workers and also Seto and Mokuba and a few engineers for the game. When they arrived at the gate Duke Devlin and Mai Valentine were already there. They greeted Yugi and his friends.

"There you guys are. What took you guys so long?" Duke asked.

Tristan laughed. "Well, Yugi couldn't decide what to wear I think." This caused Yugi's face to heat up slightly because of embarrassment as everyone else laughed.

"Couldn't decide what to wear? Yugi, you didn't have to dress up for me." Mai smirked. Yugi's face was still warm as he heard another voice call out. He looked over at the gate to see Mokuba walking towards it.

"You guys finally made it. Great." The younger Kaiba exclaimed. Opening the gate, he gave a slight smile. "Thanks for the help. I know you were the last group of people that my brother would ask for help with something, but you were the only ones that make sense to try the game out. Seto knew that eventually we would need someone who wasn't apart of the production of the game to try it out before we could release it."

"It's no problem, Mokuba." Yugi smiled. "Besides, Joey has been so excited to try the game out the day you showed us those pictures. " The teen chuckled.

"Just as long as we don't get trapped in there again." Mai added.

Duke looked over at Mai with a slight look of confusion. "Did you just use the words 'trapped' and 'again' in the same sentence? What happened last time?"

Mokuba rubbed the back of his head after Duke asked his question. "It's a long story. But don't worry. My big brother made sure nothing like that will happen again." He said with a large childish grin. "Speaking of my big brother, he is waiting for us. We shouldn't keep him waiting any longer. Follow me."

The group, led by Mokuba, walked to the far end of Kaibaland to a building closed off to the public. It wasn't a very large building but it stood out with the large sign on the front of the building which had multiple monsters on it. Kaiba's signature Blue Eyes were in the center. This building is where Seto Kaiba had the final versions of the pods for his Virtual Reality Game that would be opened to the public after the last edits were made. This were the ones that Yugi and his friends would be using.

"They're right in here." Mokuba said as he led them inside. Yugi looked around and saw the computer screens all around and the pods in a circle around a large computer in the center.

Seto looked as the door slid open and saw that they have arrived, letting out a slight groan of distaste. "It's about time you got here." Seto said. "I don't have all day, and I don't want to waste the time with you and your little group, Yugi. But since you're the only one that even comes close to me skill wise, you were the only one that made sense, so I don't have much choice." The older Kaiba crossed his arms while he was talking. "So listen up while I explain the basics of my game." Seto then looked over at Joey. "And I'll try to talk slow and not use a lot of big words, so mutts like you can understand."

Joey reacted to that insult as he always did, clenched his fist and growling slightly. "Why I oughta.." He was about to jump at Kaiba, and he would have if Tristan hadn't grabbed in him a full nelson and held him back.

"Calm down, Joey, you knew he was going to do that." Tristan said while he strained to hold Joey back. "Stop letting him get to you."

Seto just looked away from Joey. "Hmph. Like you could do anything to me, Wheeler. Be thankful you're friends with Yugi, or else you wouldn't even be here. Just keep quiet and try not to make a bigger fool of yourself then you already have." He laughed.

Mokuba walked over to a computer and began typing something. A moment later the pods opened up.

Seto smirked. "The world you are all about to enter isn't like the last one. Cards mean nothing there, so your decks won't be required. The monsters are already in the world. You'll all start with one lower leveled monster. This will be your guardian. This monster will be doing your fighting, but their original attack and defense points, also, mean nothing. You also don't have life points but your guardian does. So if you lose all your guardians, then you lose. So you better plan on getting better and stronger guardians if you want to survive since you won't all be together. You will all randomly be sent to different starting points. Each has it's own terrain and monsters. Your goal is to find and reach the Tower of Immortals and make it to the top. Defeat the monster there and you win. Now to be fair since you all only start with one guardian, you will all be paired up with a partner."

"That was my idea," Mokuba added proudly. "Since not everyone is my big brother and it has to be kid friendly. You can't just toss a kid in the middle of nowhere with just a single monster, and expect to have a chance since once you lose all your guardians you're out. So you all get a partner, at least until you meet up with the rest of your group with your situation."

"As my little brother said, I hate having to work with someone else, but you have to have a chance of success at the start or this game will never go anywhere. But I can't make it so easy that even a chump, like Wheeler, could beat it."

"Watch it, rich boy." Joey retaliated.

Seto just smirked. "I'm done talking. You'll figure the rest out on your own, or you better or else you won't last long. Let's get this over and done with." Seto Kaiba then looked over at his little brother, and Mokuba knew what his brother wanted.

Higher skill will be paired with lower skill." Mokuba said pressing a few buttons. "I'll be paired with my brother, Yugi with Tea, Joey with his sister, Mia with Tristan, and Duke with Bakura. So enter the pods and the rest will be taken care of."

With that said, everyone began getting into the pods. The helmet connected to their heads, and the visors slid over their eyes. Everything was going as planned as the transition to the game world began.

A computer voice began explaining to each person their starting point. Yugi watched as he was given a choice of three different starting guardians. He chose the Celtic Guardian and everything was going smoothly, but what happened next was not what Yugi expected. Soon he found himself waking up in a forest on a path. Soon he started hearing a voice talking to him.

"Master? Master, are you okay?" Yugi slowly opened his eyes and saw his guardian was the one that was speaking to him, the Celtic Guardian. "Master Yugi, come. We must keep going. It will be dark soon, and we have to make it to town before then. Your partner is just up ahead and waiting for us."

Yugi slowly rubbed his eyes and started to stand, his guardian helping him up. "Partner?" he asked somehow forgetting he was given a partner. "Oh yeah, Tea." The teen said.

"Tea?" The Celtic Guardian asked. "I'm sorry, Master, but I don't know who that is."

Yugi looked shocked when his guardian said he didn't know who Tea is. "What do you mean you don't know who she is? She is supposed to be my partner."

"Master, you are greatly mistaken. Your partner is Master Mokuba, and he and his guardian are waiting for us."

Yugi's eyes widened further when he said Mokuba. "Mokuba? Why is Mokuba my partner? What happened?" Yugi was worried about Tea; even though, he knew it was just a game. He had no idea where she and the rest of his friends were, or if they all got partnered up at all like Mokuba said they would.

"_Yugi, I think it would be best if we talk to Mokuba. Maybe he has an idea of what happened. My guess is that he arrived before us. And if we got the wrong partner then Kaiba and Tea got the wrong partner as well, that is a given. They may have been partnered with each other, or everyone's partner isn't the one we were told going into this."_

"You're right, let's go talk to Mokuba. Lead the way, Celtic Guardian." His monster bowed his head slightly and started walking forward on the path. Yugi followed and soon they saw two figures start to manifest up ahead. As they got closer, Yugi saw that it was, in fact, Mokuba and his guardian, Kanan the Swordmistress. "Mokuba!" Yugi called out.

Both, Mokuba and his monster, turned to look at them. "It's Master Yugi, Master Mokuba." Kanan the Swordmistress said.

"Mokuba, what happened? Where is Tea?" Yugi asked after running up to him. "And what about your brother?"

"Yugi..I.." Mokuba looked away, not wanting to look Yugi in the eyes. "I..um..guess I pressed the wrong buttons." he replied softly and not convincing.

"You guess you pressed the wrong buttons? Mokuba, I don't believe someone like you could 'press the wrong buttons' and mess it up. Really, what happened? Why didn't we get the partners that you said? Was there an error in the game, or did someone do it on purpose?

Mokuba still did not look at Yugi, trying to find the right words for this situation. "I'm sorry, Yugi. It w-was me…I did it. I mixed up the pairings. I just…"

"You mixed them up? Why in the world did you do that? What purpose does it serve?" Yugi grabbed Mokuba's shoulders and shook him slightly as he asked.

"Yugi…I." Mokuba tried to speak but still couldn't get the words to come out. This was proving more difficult than he thought.

"Come on, Mokuba, why did you do it? Tell me, please."

"Because I wanted to spend time with you, Yugi!" Mokuba yelled, turning his head towards Yugi but closing his eyes.

"Wh-What?" Yugi replied, shocked and not sure if he heard him correctly.

Mokuba slowly opened his eyes but lowered his head. "I wanted to spend time with you, Yugi. That's why I mixed up the pairings. This was the only way I could, I'm sorry." Mokuba felt his face heat up as he spoke. What was he doing? Wanting to spend sometime with Yugi, alone? This wasn't going to work. He began to regret doing this more and more by the second.

"Why, Mokuba? Why would you want to do that?" Yugi was baffled by the younger Kaiba in front of him. Why did he want time with him? Why would he risk angering his brother? He knew Seto put so much time and effort into this game, and now he had to partner with one of his friends.

"Are you mad at me, Yugi?" Mokuba asked timidly, worried that Yugi was mad at him and probably ruining any chance that Yugi and his friends would have to enjoy this game. Mokuba kept his head down as his thoughts tore him apart inside. He was so ashamed of what he did, and he couldn't fix it now because they were already in the game world.

"Mad? No, I'm not mad, Mokuba. I'm just confused about all this."

At Yugi's words, Mokuba looked up at him, shocked that he wasn't mad. "You're not mad? Really?"

"No, Mokuba, I just want to know the reason. That's all. I'm sure everyone else is probably fine, and this is just a game. What's the worst that could happen? But really, what is the reason behind you wanting to spend time with me, so much that you would do this?"

"Well…" Mokuba was about to say the true reason, or at least try, but he was cut off by his guardian.

"Master, we must go now!" She said holding up her sword, and the Celtic Guardian holding up his seconds after. "It is no longer safe here. We must get out of the forest quickly before monsters show up."

Yugi and Mokuba looked at their guardians who were ready for a fight, and moments later four Leghuls appeared from out of the bushes. Then, the situation got worse as two Cockroach Knights showed up between the Leghuls just seconds after.

"Gah, we're out numbered!" Mokuba gasped. "We have to get to the town up ahead. Our guardians have no chance against those numbers even if they are stronger. We can't risk it! Let's go, Yugi!"And with that Yugi and Mokuba, as well as their guardians, began running as quickly as they could away from the monsters and towards the town where they would be safe, and hopefully where Yugi could get some answers.

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**Well that's the first chapter. Hope you guys liked it and look forward to the rest. Like I said, I welcome your reviews and comments. So let me know what you liked and didn't like so far :) I won't bite, unless you want me to. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Sorry for the wait. I lost my computer and just now got a new one. Hope the wait is worth it because I really like this story but I just hope you guys enjoy it.**

**As always, I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or anything to do with it.**

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**Chapter 2**

Yugi sat on the bed in the room that he and Mokuba were spending the night in. Mokuba was able to convince the innkeeper to let them spend the night by using his kid charms, or at least that is what Mokuba told Yugi. Really, it was more begging then charming, and even a little guilt. Mokuba wasn't in the room at the moment, he was actually trying to gather information on where the tower might be because it was programmed to change every game to give it more playback value. As he tried to get information on the tower, Yugi looked over at Yami who was on the bed across from him.

"_Are you okay, Yugi? You haven't said a word since Mokuba left." _Yami said folding his hands and placing them by his face. "_Yugi? Did you hear me?"_

"Hmm? Oh yeah, I heard you. I'm trying to figure out the reason why Mokuba did all this." Yugi replied followed by a sigh.

"_Well, there can't be that many reasons why he would want to spend time with you, or at least, good enough that he would go this far."_

Yugi nodded at the Pharaoh's words, brushing some of his hair out of his eyes. "You're right, Pharaoh, but I can't make any sense of it. I think the only way we will figure it out is if we can get Mokuba to tell us." Yugi replied followed by another sigh. "I just hope he will tell us because I can't stop thinking about it. I'm also worried about our friends. We have no idea where they are or who got paired up with Seto."

"_Our friends are fine, I know it. They are strong and we will be reunited. And this still is just a game little one."_ Yami said, trying to reassure and comfort Yugi. It helped slightly because Yugi gave a faint smile and nod before hearing the door open and Mokuba walking inside.

Mokuba walked into the room and noticed Yugi just sitting on the bed, his jacket and shoes removed. "I didn't have a lot of luck. I doubt the tower is anywhere close, but I did get a rumor that there might be a monster or two that we can recruit to be our guardians not far from here. It didn't sound like the Dark Magician or anything. I know that is your favorite monster, but I'm sure we'll find him." Mokuba said with a smile sitting down on his bed. He then noticed Yugi lost in thought slightly. "Hey, Yugi? Are you okay?" He asked while removing his shoes and his own jacket as well, leaving his long sleeved shirt on. "You're still wondering why I said I wanted to spend time with you, aren't you? Why I did all this?" Mokuba closed his eyes, bowed his head slightly, and sighed. "Promise me something, Yugi?"

The violet eyed teen looked at Mokuba and curious what he wanted him to promise Mokuba. "What is it?" He asked, his eyes focused on Mokuba now.

"Promise me that you won't tell anyone. Especially not Seto. I don't want to think about what he would do if he knew." Mokuba lifted his head and looked at his partner, Yugi, knowing he had his full attention.

Yugi thought about it for a second before nodding. "Alright, Mokuba, I won't tell anyone. I promise what you tell me won't leave this room. Now, could you please tell me why you did this?"

And with that Mokuba took a deep breath and collected his final thoughts before finally admitting why he did this. "Okay, the reason I want to spend time with you…is because I admire you, Yugi Moto. I really admire you." The black hair Kaiba said, his face warming up a little. "Even if you drive my brother crazy and always manage to beat him. As much as I look up to my big brother, I look up to you more. Not to mention, you've always helped me when I needed it. You've also saved me on a few occassions."

Yugi sat on the edge of his bed, surprised that Mokuba admired him when his older brother was his rival. They didn't have that much in common. "I had no idea, Mokuba. I mean I'm flattered and all but…"

"There is something else, Yugi, but I'm scared to say it. I've wanted to say it for so long, and now I finally have the chance. I just don't think I have the courage to say it now." Mokuba took another deep breath, even deeper than before. "No, I can't back out now, not after all this." He slowly exhaled the breath he took as he tried to muster up his courage to finally admit his feelings to the teen in front of him. "I-I like you, Yugi."

It didn't hit Yugi or even Yami right away, but when it did, it hit like a ton of bricks. Both Yugi and Yami's eyes widened as much as they could, though only Yugi's reaction could be seen by the one sitting across from him. "Wha-what?" Yugi said finally being able to get the words out.

Mokuba clenched his pants tightly as his hands were still on his legs. "I know it's wrong but I like you, Yugi. That's why I wanted to spend time with you, but Seto would never let me hang out with you and your friends. I could never even ask him without him asking questions. Not to mention, I'm three years younger then you, which doesn't help this situation at all."

"Mo-Mokuba, I have no idea what to say." and that was pretty much the truth. It was a miracle that Yugi was even able to get just those words out. He was speechless that Seto Kaiba's little brother just admitted his feelings to him. Not to mention, they were both guys, and Yugi had never even thought about being with another guy before. Well, maybe a few stray thoughts here and there but never someone specific. Yugi just could not find the words to say at all, not even Yami could think of anything to say. All Yugi could do was just sit there and blink. Blink. Blink.

Mokuba sat there in the complete silence with Yugi, just looking at each other. Mokuba's face was so red that you could almost see the heat come off his face. He had no idea what was going through Yugi's head right now even though he pretty much knew this was going to be his reaction when he said it. Mokuba could feel his hands shaking, his body pretty much trembling as he felt tears starting to build in his eyes. He knew he shouldn't have told Yugi. He knew he never should have paired himself with Yugi. "I'm sorry, Yugi." he apologized, trembling still with his words. "I should never have said anything.."

A tear began to roll down Mokuba's face and Yugi saw it. Then, he felt like time stood still and everything went silent. He closed his eyes, opened them a moment later, and realized he was in Yami's mind, the room full of stairs and doors that most made no sense at all.

"_Yugi."_ He heard the same voice he has been hearing for quite sometime now.

"_Yugi, you must decide how you want to deal with this. I don't know how much help I can be, but you know I've always been there for you, always supported you, and trusted you no matter what."_

"I know, Pharaoh. I just don't know what to do. I mean I've never given being with another guy that much thought. Let alone Mokuba. I mean it's starting to make sense now." Yugi sighed. Whenever he was around him, Mokuba's mood seemed to change. It seemed like Yugi always had Mokuba's full attention when he spoke and had noticed him looking at him a few times but shrugged it off not giving it much thought. "It makes sense now and I never realized it."

"_I didn't either, Yugi, but now we know the truth and I don't know what the answer to this is. Just another mystery, something I'd figure we'd both be used to by now."_ The Pharaoh said, his hand halfway in his pocket as he spoke, trying to help Yugi with what to do but all he could really do was support whatever Yugi decided.

"I guess the only thing to do now is go over the pros and cons. Weigh our options pretty much." Yugi sat down on one of the steps, the Pharaoh sitting with him. "Gah, where to start? I mean I wouldn't have that much clue what to do since I've never even been in a relationship before. And this is Mokuba, if Seto found out, he would probably kill me. But he has changed so much since we've first met him."

"_I know, I've seen that he does have goodness in him. Not to mention, he has the same loyalty as you do to your friends as well as Kaiba has for his brother and vice versa." _

"And if I guess we're talking about it, he isn't exactly bad looking. I'd even dare to say cute." Yugi admitted and blushing slightly. "He isn't even in High School yet, so that is a problem." Then Yugi sighed as he finally came to another big point. "Then again, it's not like I have anyone else right now."

"_What about Tea?" _The Pharaoh asked knowing that Yugi did have feelings for her. "_Don't you like her?"_

Yami was right. "I do have feelings for Tea but let's be honest. Do you think there is even a chance of us getting together at this point? I think she is more interested in you than me. Plus, look at me. She is like five inches taller than me."

"_So what are you saying, Yugi?"_ Yami asked intrigued by what Yugi planned to do.

Yugi stood up off the steps and looked at the spirit of his puzzle. "I think I really only have one option. I just hope I have the courage to go through with it and see it to the end."

Mokuba still had tears rolling down his face, his eyes closed as he cried. Then, he felt something that he didn't expect. He slowly opened his eyes and looked up to see Yugi standing in front of him. Yugi's hand was on his cheek, wiping away his tears. "Yu-Yugi…?" he sniffed, blushing as his crush finished wiping the tears from his eyes and face.

"It's okay, Mokuba, you don't have to cry. There is no reason to cry." Yugi said with a smile. "Come on, no more tears. I'd rather see a smile."

Mokuba looked at Yugi stunned as he felt his thoughts and emotions return to him quickly. So quickly that Mokuba couldn't help but jump forward and wrap his arms around the other male in a hug, having more tears in his eyes than before. Though these tears were caused out of joy and not sadness.

The two finally broke away from the hug after what seemed like forever. Both had a large smile on their face, Mokuba's smile was a bit more brighter. The younger Kaiba brother looked at Yugi, his eyes practically glowing. It was at that moment that Yugi started looking at Mokuba in a different way. Looking into the other's eyes he felt his stomach start to flutter and a blush started to form on his cheeks. The moment only lasted a few seconds but like the hug it felt like forever.

Mokuba was the one to break the silence. "Yugi?"

"What is it, Mokuba?" Yugi asked kindly.

"Um, does this mean that we are…" Mokuba started to ask.

"Together?" Yugi finished his sentence, smiling again.

Mokuba let out a slight giggle that Yugi actually found really cute. "Yeah, together." Mokuba smiled back as he saw Yugi rub the back of his head.

"Well, I don't know how much of a good boyfriend I would be. I mean I don't have any past experience or anything. Then again I get the feeling that doesn't bother you, does it?" Yugi chuckled.

Mokuba simply nodded and smiled again. "Yeah, I don't have any experience either so we can learn together."

"What about Seto? What about your brother? I doubt he would accept us being together, for multiple reasons too."

Mokuba stood up, walked over to Yugi, and sat down next to him on the bed, a few inches from each other. "Don't worry about my brother. He doesn't need to know right away, and I'll deal with him if that moment comes. He's my big brother anyway."

"Are you sure about this, Mokuba?" Yugi asked shyly. "I mean it's going to take some getting used to at first since I've never thought I would be with another guy." Yugi started feeling his stomach start to flutter again. "Though I get the feeling that I do want this, to be with you." The teen looked over at Mokuba for a second before looking forward. It was that moment that he felt something touch his hand. Yugi looked down at the bed where his hand was and saw another hand on top of it. Blushing slightly he looked up at Mokuba.

Mokuba's stomach was fluttering as well, and his heart rate increased just a bit. He looked at the cute teen next to him, keeping his hand on top of his. They both just stared at each other's eyes. Once again that moment only lasted a few seconds but it felt like an eternity. They both leaned closer to each other, slowly. Then they felt their lips press together as both of them felt a slight jolt of energy shoot through their bodies.

Mokuba smiled, blushing as he slowly pulled away from the kiss. "What do you think my answer is, Yugi?" he giggled.

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**Well that is that. Chapter 2. Hope you guys liked it. Make sure to watch for chapter 3. :)**

**Please let me know what you guys think of it so far. =^_^=**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3 for those who wanted it. It isn't as long as other chapters, just ran out of ideas for the chapter. ^^"**

**Same as always, don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or anything to do with it. **

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**Chapter 3**

"Joey! Where are you, brother?!" Serenity called out. She stood there and waited for an answer, but all she heard was the tide on the beach. "Oh big brother, where are you?"

"Mistress, are you okay?" Serenity's guardian asked. Her guardian was the Mystical Elf. "Mistress Serenity, I'm sorry that you cannot find your brother." She said as she lowered her arms to her sides.

Just then a Harpie Lady flew down to ground level and let go of the person she was carrying.

"Hey, Serenity. Don't look so down. Joey is strong; we both know that. He is out there looking for you just like your looking for him." The older woman said with a thumb up. "Not to mention you got me and my guardian helping you look for him."

Serenity looked at the women and nodded with a smile. "Thank you, Mai." she said then looked out at the sea and put her hands on top of each other over her chest. "Did you see anything while you were up there?"

"Well besides the sea," Mai sighed, "I noticed a few buildings quite a distance from here. I couldn't tell you if there is people there or not though. I also saw what looked like a small fishing village, I'm assuming, close to the sea and a few boats out in the water. We can head to either place. It's your choice, hun. Just tell me where you want to go and we're on our way."

Serenity looked back at Mai and then at Mai's guardian who had her arms folded across her chest in her signature pose. "Um, I say we try the fishing village first. That's what Kaiba said, right? That we need to gather information? So going to places that we know have people there is what we need to do. That's our best bet?" she asked a little shyly.

"That is what I was thinking. The village is closer, and there is probably a few traders there because from here it looked like all they have is fish and whatever else they can catch. Since traders are traveling most of the time, they are bound to know something that we can use." Mai looked behind her and pointed at the direction of the village. "It's just in that direction. We can leave whenever you're ready, Serenity."

Serenity nodded. "Yeah, I'm ready."

The two girls, followed by their guardians, made the walk to the small fishing village that Mai saw while she was scouting the area from the sky with the help of her Harpie Lady.

"Hey, Mai?" Serenity asked quietly.

Mai looked over at the younger female as they walked. "Hmm, what is it, Serenity?"

"Do you think everyone else is okay?"

"I'm sure they are all okay. Don't you worry your pretty little head, hun. No matter who they have as partners. They will find their way to us or the tower. Plus, I'm certain that stubborn brother of yours is losing his hair trying to find you." Mai laughed which caused Serenity to giggle.

"Yeah, your right. That sounds like Joey. I couldn't have asked for a better brother."

"You're very lucky to have someone like him," Mai said looking forward again. I still remember Duelist Kingdom; all he could think about was you and winning the prize money for your eye operation. Just thinking about you seemed to give him the strength he needed to win. If that isn't a big brother then, I don't know what is."

Serenity smiled at Mai's words. She felt safe knowing she had the experienced and skilled Mai Valentine as her partner, and the knowledge that Joey is out there looking for her gave her the strength to keep looking as well.

Just then the Harpie Lady flew down quickly causing the two females to stop walking. "What is it?" Mai asked. "Do you see something?"

"Just up ahead, Mistress Mai. Ooguchis. Shall I take care of them?" The Harpie Lady asked flashing her razor sharp talons.

Serenity gasped slightly then looked at her own guardian. "Help Mai's guardian." The Mystical Elf nodded then folding her hands together and started to chant a spell on the Harpie Lady. Both the guardians began to be surrounded by a slight blue aura.

Mai watched as the spell was cast on her guardian. "Alright, you go take care of those annoying little things." Then just like that, the Harpie Lady flew in the direction of the Ooguchis and with screech began to fight them. There wasn't that many and they were surprised by the sudden onslaught from the Harpie Lady. It only took one or two swipes of her talons to defeat them. Mai and Serenity ran ahead and arrived at the battle spot just as the Harpie Lady finished off the last monster. "Good work my Harpie Lady. They never stood a chance. Now let's hurry up and get to that village before more show up. Just because we won that fight doesn't mean we will be able to win them all."

Serenity and the two guardians nodded then once again started to make their way to the village. Their pace was quicker this time knowing that there were monsters by and in these waters, and they wanted to be in the safety of the village before more showed up.

Once they finally arrived at the village, Serenity sat down on a small bench by one of the huts as Mai began talking to the villagers to see what information she could get from them. She was able to find a trader that came from a relatively large town about 3 miles east from the village. The trader told Mai all about the town, and she was convinced that was the next place they needed to go.

"You must be careful miss. The road hasn't been entirely safe the last few weeks. There has been sightings of winged bandits that look similar to your guardian right there attacking people on the road, but from what I can tell from you I believe it's safe to say you would do just fine." The trader said to Mai.

Mai was intrigued by the fact that the trader said the winged bandits looked like her

guardian. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" She asked her Harpie Lady. The Harpie Lady simply nodded. "There might be a chance that they are your sisters or even your brother." Mai looked back at Serenity who was looking out at the sea from the bench she was sitting on. The Mystical Elf remained by her side as her Mistress watched the waves.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Serenity asked her guardian. She knew it wasn't real, but it was still beautiful and looked so realistic.

"Yes, Mistress." she replied to her question.

Mai then walked over to Serenity and began to tell her about the town and how that was their best bet for information on the tower or her brother and everyone else.

"I was able to find us a spot that we can spend the night in. It isn't the best but at least it is inside and not on rocks or anything." Mai told her. "Then we can start heading to the town, hopefully without any problems."

"I just hope it's one of her sisters or brother like you said. At least we would be able to talk with them, right?"

Mai nodded. "Yeah, but if it is her brother, we might have a harder time because as strong as my Harpie Lady is the male versions are faster and more deadly. We would have to get to him before he gets to us." Mai then noticed Serenity started looking a little worried. "Don't worry, hun. My Harpie Lady will take care of anything that gets in our way. Plus, with your Mystical Elf protecting us then we should have no problem at all."

"Yeah, your right. Thanks again for everything, Mai." Serenity said looking at the sea again.

"Don't mention it." Mai replied with a slight smile. "Though, for now let's get some sleep. We have a long road ahead of us, and we will need to be ready for anything."

Serenity smiled at Mai then stood up. "Yeah, that sounds good. Lead the way."

They walked to where they would be spending the night, a small hut near the center of the village. Mai let Serenity in first. The younger Wheeler looked around, seeing only two bedrolls on a large blanket of some sort. Mai followed shortly behind and sighed. "I know it isn't much but there weren't any five star hotels around here."

Serenity just giggled. "Well it's only for the night and you didn't have to pay anything so I guess we shouldn't complain."

Mai laughed. "You are right about that one, hun." Mai walked over to the bed on the right side and took her jacket off, folding it and setting it on the ground next to her. "Well, I guess we might as well get to sleep. We have quite a day ahead of us." Mai looked over and saw Serenity already on the bed, laying down.

"Sleep sounds good." Serenity said, looking back at Mai.

"Yes it does."

"What do you think the others are doing right now, Mai?"

"Well your brother probably refuses to sleep until he finds you so he's probably still up and looking for you. Yugi and everyone else is probably sleeping or looking for a place to sleep."

"I wonder who their partners are, and why we didn't get the partners that Seto's brother said we would."

"I have no clue, Serenity. But I bet you they are thinking the same things."

"Yeah, you are probably right." Serenity said, rolling on her back. "Well I guess worrying about it won't do us any good."

"That's good thinking. We have a lot of walking ahead of us so we need our sleep."

"Right. Well, goodnight, Mai." she said before closing her eyes.

"Sleep well, Serenity." Mai closed her eyes as well. The last thought she had was the same as her partner's last thought. What was Joey doing right now and how was he doing?

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**Like I said, I know it was short. Most of the chapters about the other characters will probably be shorter then ones with Yugi and Mokuba. But I still wanted to show what the rest of the gang is going through. Still hope you enjoyed it cause I'm still new to this.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Eeyup, here it is. Chapter 4. This is another short chapter, but don't worry. The next chapter will be a nice longer read. ^^ Hope you guys enjoy it and please keep letting me know how it is. I really read all reviews.**

* * *

**Chapter 4  
**

"We're going this way, Wheeler. That is final. The sooner we find the tower then the sooner we can get out of here, and I can get away from you."

"What is your problem, Kaiba? I know you want to find Mokuba. I want to find my sister." Joey yelled back at Seto. "What is so wrong at working together to find them?"

"The problem is that I don't want help from a mutt like you." Seto replied as he started walking away from Joey. "Of all the people, why did I get stuck with you?"

"Well get over it! You said it yourself! You have to work with your partner, or you have no chance of surviving. We already should be looking for more people. We either find your little brother or I find my little sister. We can part ways after we find one of them, so why don't you get over the fact that you have to work with me until we find them?"

Seto Kaiba growled slightly. "Fine, Wheeler! But we are doing this my way. This is my game. I know how it works, how it runs. Just try to keep up."

Joey looked at Kaiba. Yeah, he didn't like that he was stuck with him, but they needed to find their younger siblings. The last thing they wanted was to spend more time together then they had to. The chances of Joey trying to punch Kaiba would increase the longer they were together. Now that it would have ended well if he did try.

"We are looking for my little brother." Seto said looking back at Joey. "If you don't want to be left alone then I suggest following me, Wheeler."

Joey clenched his fist and wanted to hit Kaiba but he was right. Being left alone with only his guardian wouldn't end well. He calmed himself then started following Kaiba but from a distance.

"There should be a town in that direction. With any luck, Mokuba will be there, and we can go our separate ways." Seto told Joey without turning to look at him. He didn't care what happened to Joey. The only thing he was worried about was finding his little brother.

Of course, on the other end, Mokuba wasn't looking for his brother. He knew as soon as Seto found him that either he would have to leave Yugi behind or tell Seto that he didn't want to go with him. Seto had no interest in working with anyone else besides Mokuba, but he wasn't aware that Mokuba didn't feel the same way.

"Master Joey, are you alright?" The Axe Raider asked. That was Joey's starting guardian while Kaiba's was the Lord of Dragons. "I know you are worried about your sister, but you cannot let that clog your mind. You must be thinking clearly in a place like this. The swamp can hold many unpleasant things that can catch you off guard at any moment."

"Yeah, well it doesn't help that I hate places like this." Joey said then jumped to the side when heard a noise. "Yeh!"

"It was a stick, Wheeler." Seto said still walking. "Try not to wet yourself with every single noise you hear."

"Oh shut it, Kaiba!" Joey yelled back.

"Be quiet you fool. Unless you want to wake the things that call this swamp their home." Seto told him.

Joey looked around making sure nothing was coming after him. "Let's just make it to that town. It better not be far from here."

"Why? Are you scared? Scared of a few bugs?" Kaiba laughed. "Oh please, this swamp is meant for people like you, Joey. It's called a starting point for a reason. It might as well be called a tutorial."

"You know, we wouldn't even be in this mess if your game hadn't messed up and put us together." Joey retorted.

"Don't look at me. The one who set the teams was Mokuba…" Seto stopped when he

said that. Was it really Mokuba who did this? No, it couldn't be. It had to be an simple error in the system.

"What's wrong, rich boy? I thought you were in a big hurry to make it to the town. Why are you just standing still?" Joey asked him standing as well.

"Be quiet." Seto growled before starting to walk again. This was just a simple glitch, that's

all. Seto tried to believe that yet he couldn't help but think about if Mokuba really was behind this. Why? If Mokuba did this, what reason did he have?

He had no idea that Mokuba really was behind this and his reasons for it. He also had no idea what was going on with his brother either or the fact that it involved his rival, Yugi Moto.

They had just got out of the swamp when Joey realized something. "Hey Kaiba, don't you have like a button that you can end the game with?" He asked. Seto stopped when he heard Joey's question. He wouldn't admit it but Joey had a point and reminding him of the failsafe button to end the game if there was a problem since the regular game exit was turned off for the testing. Seto held out his arms, palms facing out. He then moved his arms up, then down, and finally back to their starting positions. After a moment there was a beep and Seto spoke.

"Computer! End game!" Seto yelled.

"Password required." A computer voice answered.

"Checkmate!"

"One moment." The computer voice said then multiple beeps of different tones could be heard.

Seto smirked and crossed his arms. "Good news, Wheeler. I don't have to babysit you now."

"Error. Password invalid." The computer said after a few moments.

"What?! What do you mean password invalid?" Seto yelled back, beyond confused. "I set that password myself and triple checked that it worked before this. Someone changed the password today!"

"What do you mean someone changed the password?" Joey asked, scratching the back of his head as he was confused like Seto. "Who could have done that?"

"No one. Only me and Mokuba can change the password."

"Hey, rich boy. If only you and your little brother are the only ones who can change it, and you weren't the one to change it. Does that mean that it had to be Mokuba?"

Seto was caught off guard. Once again the annoying Joey had a point. He had no idea what to say. Mokuba had to have changed the password and the teams. But why? What reason would he have to do it? He knew the trouble he would be in for doing something like that so why? Seto was beyond confused and had no idea what to do now.

"Kaiba, shouldn't we keep moving? Don't you want to find your brother?"

"Quiet, Joey!" Seto yelled back, fury in his eyes. He started to walk again. Yes he wanted to find Mokuba, but now for completely different reasons. He needed to know why Mokuba did all this. And why he got partnered up with Joey Wheeler.


End file.
